A young girl is battling cancer. She is undergoing an aggressive chemotherapy
program to attack the cancer cells. Unfortunately, one of the side-effects
of chemotherapy is hair loss.
Some chemotherapy patients decide to become accustomed to their temporary
baldness. Others want to wear wigs. Lora Collins is a wig specialist. She
helps both women and children find wigs that will make them feel good about
themselves during such a difficult time.
"Your hair is part of your personality," says Collins. "It's your face
to the world."
A good self-image can boost a person's confidence, and can actually help
them feel better. "It's rewarding to know that I can help give people back
their confidence," she says.
Collins supplies wigs for cancer patients all across the country. Using
a website, she can help customers measure and fit a wig and pick from a variety
of hairstyles. Not being able to see the customer doesn't seem to be a hindrance
when Collins fashions the wig.
"Either by our toll-free number or by e-mail, we can talk at length about
the style that they want," she says. "Some people even e-mail me pictures
of what they're looking for."
Collins is happy to reach out to a wider circle of people. "It's great
to be able to help all types of people."
Collins also hopes to get in contact with people who want to donate hair.
Many of the wigs for cancer patients are made with real human hair. Wigs of
this caliber can have a price tag up to $5,000.
Collins works with a nonprofit organization called Wigs For Kids, where
people can donate their hair. "We ask for hair that's never been colored or
bleached, is 12 inches in length and tied in a ponytail at one end," she says.
"Children with cancer and burn victims really appreciate getting the hair
to make a wig that makes them feel good," says Collins. After all, it takes
10 ponytails to make one wig.
Medical patients are far from the only people who may choose to wear wigs.
"There are basically two types of wigs," says Collins. "Wigs can be for fun
and for fashion."
Bruce Flemino is a wig specialist in Las Vegas. He helps people who are
balding or who just want to wear a hairpiece. He offers kits telling people
how to make their own wigs.
"Wigs can be extremely expensive," says Flemino. "And you're not always
paying more for quality."
Top-quality human hair for one wig may cost approximately $250, plus $20
for a foundation and a few hundred dollars for labor. The resulting wig could
cost the consumer up to $4,000 or $5,000.
"After that, you often have to pay a monthly maintenance fee to keep your
wig in good shape," says Flemino. "I just didn't think that kind of economics
was right."
So Flemino has set up a business that helps people fashion their own wigs.
At first, customers are skeptical about whether they could actually craft
their own hairpiece. "I've been doing this for more than 30 years, but it's
not that difficult," he says.
"I talk them through it. When they say, 'I can't do that,' I say, 'When
you were little, you had to learn to tie your shoes. You learned to type.
You can learn this.'"
With Flemino's kit, customers receive equipment and instructions on how
to tie their own wig. "You need hair to go in a certain direction and you
have to figure out hair density," he says. "The main thing is you can also
maintain your own hairpiece."
It might not be something you want to think about now, but being bald may
be in your future. "By the time many [people] reach their 30s, they will have
some hair loss," he says. "And it's not just men. I have calls from women
who don't have a hair on their head and they want help."
Flemino enjoys helping his customers over the phone and the Internet. "It's
a sensitive subject," he says. "I can be helpful and understanding but I can't
see them."
Helping people look their best is an important part of this job.
"People who do this really have to have compassion in their nature," says
Collins. "You're helping people with a sensitive issue and boosting their
self-image."